“Personal income increased 0.4%, as expected, while
personal spending also increased 0.4% … Wages and salaries increased 0.5% in
December, which helped drive the increase in personal income along with a 1.2%
gain in personal interest income.” More and charts from…
MARKET REPORT / ANALYSIS
-Monday the S&P 500 was down 0.7% to 2854.
-VIX jumped about 25% to 13.84.
-The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 2.72%. (This
is in the red zone that many have suggested will lead to selling in the stock
market.)
-My sum of 17 Indicators dropped from 0 to -4 today. (A “-”
number means that most indicators are bearish.) Longer term, the indicators are
also falling.
I have been looking at topping indicators which are
bearish, suggesting we are at or near a top for several weeks. (This doesn’t
have to be a major top. A drop in the 3-5% range is likely; but of course, it
could be worse.)
The Index is 11% above its 200-dMA. One needs to go all
the way back to Feb of 2011 to find a number that high. In 2011, that peak was
followed by a 4% drop; a recovery to new highs; and then a 19% drop. Clearly, we are in territory that requires a
heightened level of attention.
I am still bearish short-term – topping indicators look
stretched. Longer term I remain a bull.
TODAY’S RANKING OF
15 ETFs (Ranked Daily)
The top ranked ETF receives 100%. The rest are then
ranked based on their momentum relative to the leading ETF. While momentum isn’t stock performance per
se, momentum is closely related to stock performance. For example, over the 4-months
from Oct thru mid-February 2016, the number 1 ranked Financials (XLF) outperformed
the S&P 500 by nearly 20%. In 2017 Technology (XLK) was ranked in the top 3
Momentum Plays for 52% of all trading days in 2017 (if I counted correctly.)
XLK was up 35% on the year while the S&P 500 was up 18%.
*For additional background on the ETF ranking system see
NTSM Page at…
TODAY’S RANKING OF THE DOW 30 STOCKS (Ranked Daily)
The top ranked stock receives 100%. The rest are then
ranked based on their momentum relative to the leading stock. Avoid GE,
Procter, Gamble and Merck. Their 120-day moving average is falling.
*I rank the Dow 30 similarly to the ETF ranking system.
For more details, see NTSM Page at…
MONDAY MARKET INTERNALS (NYSE DATA)
Market Internals
slipped to Negative on the market.
Market Internals are a decent trend-following analysis of
current market action, but should not be used alone for short term trading.
They are usually right, but they are often late. They are most useful when they diverge from
the Index. In 2014, using these
internals alone would have made a 9% return vs. 13% for the S&P 500 (in on Positive,
out on Negative – no shorting).
LONG TERM INDICATOR
Monday, Price and Volume indicators were positive; Sentiment &
VIX indicators were neutral. This adds up to a BUY indication, but at this
point a BUY signal is meaningless. The
NTSM system is designed to issue BUY signals near a Bottom as conditions rapidly
improve. Now, it is just an indication
that the market is doing well. The NTSM
long-term signal can sometimes signal BUY at the top if conditions are too good.
The last actionable Buy signal was on 15 November 2016.
TSP (RETIREMENT ACCOUNT – GOV EMPLOYEES) ALLOCATION
I remain FULLY INVESTED at 50% stocks in the S&P 500
Index fund (C-Fund) with the remainder is 50% G-Fund (Government securities).
This is a conservative retiree allocation, but I consider it fully invested for
my situation.
